Operation First Place

Operation First Place (11-13 June 2006) was a US Marine Corps operation conducted at the Samawah Oil Refinery 280 kilometers southeast of Baghdad with the goal of cutting off the Iraqi insurgents' oil supply; the insurgents sold the oil on the black market or used it to make bombs. The Marines took heavy losses in the first stage of the operation, but they were able to defeat the insurgents in the second stage, destroying their insurgent enemies.

Prelude
The Samawah oil refinery was located 280 kilometers to the southeast of the capital of Baghdad, Iraq and was a key strategic resource for the Iraqi insurgents in their war against the United States-led coalition during the Iraq War. The insurgents either used the oil to supply their forces for offensives against the coalition, or they would sell the oil on the black market to desperate civilians to make some money on the side, with which they could buy weapons and vehicles to fight the coalition forces. Because of the vitality of the oil refinery, the US Marine Corps decided to launch an operation to recapture the refinery, which lay so close to the capital and was an important resource.

Operation
The American soldiers moved into the refinery to secure vital positions, and they made contact with the insurgents early in the battle, with the militants rushing into an attack and fighting against the Marines. The American forces engaged the insurgents and fought them at close quarters in the facility buildings or at long range in the streets of the refinery. Some US soldiers took up positions on balconies to have sniping positions that gave them the edge against the insurgents, and the Americans succeeded in inflicting heavy losses on the insurgents. The Americans were held back at first, but they were able to counterattack in the second stage of the operation, and they scored a victory against the insurgents. Samawah was now safe in American hands, and the insurgents were temporarily forced out of the area.